Radically increasing government spending with no regard for the budget deficit in a country which already has huge public debt at more than 130% of GDP, a weak economy and financial markets that are already skeptical. What could possibly go wrong?

Radically increasing government spending with no regard for the budget deficit in a country which already has huge public debt at more than 130% of GDP, a weak economy and financial markets that are already skeptical. What could possibly go wrong?

Does the new government propose to "Radically increasing government spending"?

The article didn't directly say that.

It did say that they would "create jobs".Does that necesssarily mean an increase in government spending?A government can promote job growth without an increase in the government payroll.

The article said that they would deport migrants.While that may result in a short or medium term increase in spending for the cost of deporting those migrants, it may result in long term savings as there would be savings in the cost of supporting those migrants who are not employed and/or receiving government subsidies.

The article did say that they must "address the poverty in southern Italy".I will concede that could/would increase government spending, but might that not be offset by some reduction from not having to spend money on poverty among the migrants?

_________________The American Republic will endure until the day Congress discovers that it can bribe the public with the public’s money.- misattributed to Alexis De Tocqueville

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Radically increasing government spending with no regard for the budget deficit in a country which already has huge public debt at more than 130% of GDP, a weak economy and financial markets that are already skeptical. What could possibly go wrong?

The problem starts with the eurozone. With a common currency, some countries, like Germany, are advantaged, because for them, the euro is weaker than it would be with the Deutsch Mark; other countries, essentially those in the South of Europe, are disadvantaged because the euro is too strong for their economy, stronger than if they had their own currency.

The solution would be the one that works in any country, like the US for example, where the central/federal state redistributes wealth from the rich regions to the poor regions. But for that, the Germans would have to pay a too high price, so they refuse to pay it. So the countries of the South of Europe plunge in stagnation.

The only solution that the eurozone has is austerity, always more austerity, which does not work for the Southern countries, because for them the euro is too strong. Our elites don't understand that and continue to say that austerity will resolve the problem. But the population of those countries are fed up with austerity, so they reject the mainstream parties, the ones which could have a reasonable and benign solution (but only want austerity), and go to see radical parties like La Lega and M5S. That's the only solution that the population has.

It's the 21st century version of a loaf of bread and free passes to the Circus Maximus....on steroids

The problem is Caesar is Berlin will not approve.

Sometimes voters will forgive a candidate his unrealistic promise if he appears genuine and can blame it on opposing forces. Eg., Trump and his border wall.

Perhaps it will further poison the relationship between Italy and the EU/Germany. I guess that's a good thing ultimately from my PoV (EU delenda est ).

But in the EU or not this doesn't strike me as sensible policy for Italy, a country suffering from economic malaise. Canada and Finland can get away with this sort of experimentation because they have the money to throw around, Italy does not. And if things are shit a bunch of guys promising the moon on a stick is not a real solution.

I fear they will end up giving the various anti-EU forces a bad name when it all goes south.

_________________“The gap in EU finances arising from the United Kingdom’s withdrawal and from the financing needs of new priorities need to be clearly acknowledged.” - Mario Monti

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